Partnerships, Policy and Engagement

AS A LEADER in the circular economy in the packaging industry, Novolex recognizes there is an opportunity to improve and expand access to recycling and composting facilities. In addition to focused innovation and design, supporting end-of-life solutions for products requires a coordinated effort that includes industry associations and policymakers. Novolex is active both inside and outside the packaging and foodservice product industry to influence productive change. We prioritize partnerships among a variety of stakeholders, including civic and community leaders, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and others to give solutions a voice and lend our technical experience as a manufacturer and recycler.

Our communities need sustainable funding, infrastructure development and coordinated policy to support large-scale, economically viable recycling and composting solutions. This is the reason we support well-crafted extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs. To measure Novolex progress, in 2021 we established baseline data for products that meet industry and government definitions for “recyclable,” “compostable” and “reusable.”

Composting & CMA

Commercial composting is a vital infrastructure resource for several of our brands that source or make compostable products. Commercial composting experienced modest, yet continued growth in 2021. At Novolex, we have a growing portfolio of compostable products and seek to address composter challenges head on by working with key industry groups like the US Composting Council, the Biodegradable Products Institute, the Compost Manufacturing Alliance, among others, to better understand these challenges and find creative and collaborative solutions. We work with the CMA to expand testing and testing sites. We also recognize that “certified compostable” in a lab does not always translate to what compost manufacturers are seeing break down. Recognizing the need to ensure that the compost manufacturers we work with can see adequate degradation from our products, we work with CMA to field test our products for degradation in actual compost piles and in various types of composting facilities. We are proud of the progress we’ve made working with CMA, and we look forward to receiving CMA’s approval on additional product types in the near future.

Novolex continues to advocate for recycling and composting infrastructure development, including well-crafted Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) initiatives that will further build the circular economy around the world.

PHIL ROZENSKI, Vice President Public Affairs

OPERATIONS

AT NOVOLEX, WE TAKE PRIDE IN REDUCING OUR IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT ACROSS OUR MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS.

Over the past few years, we have focused on raising the environmental awareness of all our employees and creating a culture that drives performance improvements to reduce our environmental footprint. We measure and assess progress through an increasing number of operational KPIs focused on using recycled content, energy efficiency and emissions, and reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills.